Today, I’m delighted to welcome K S Grace, aka Grace Marshall, to the blog to celebrate the release of her latest novel, “The Tutor”.
Voted ETO Best Erotic Author of 2014, and a proud member of The Brit Babes, K D Grace believes Freud was right. In the end, it really IS all about sex, well sex and love. And nobody’s happier about that than she is, otherwise, what would she write about?
When she’s not writing, K D is veg gardening. When she’s not gardening, she’s walking. She walks her stories, and she’s serious about it. She and her husband have walked Coast to Coast across England, along with several other long-distance routes. For her, inspiration is directly proportionate to how quickly she wears out a pair of walking boots. She also enjoys martial arts, reading, watching the birds and anything that gets her outdoors.
KD has erotica published with Totally Bound, SourceBooks, Xcite Books, Harper Collins Mischief Books, Mammoth, Cleis Press, Black Lace, Sweetmeats Press and others.
Over to you, Grace.
“With Friends like These
Giveaway: To celebrate the release of The Tutor, I’m giving away a $30/£20 Amazon gift voucher. Enter via the Rafflecopter for your chance to win!
Thank you so much for inviting me to celebrate the launch of my novel, The Tutor, on Romancing the Past. It’s a pleasure to share my latest with your lovely readers.
Today I’d like to talk about friends – friends who totally and completely mean well, but seriously, do they know how to interfere or what? I wouldn’t go nearly so far as to say with friends like these, who needs enemies, but I would certain say that when friends interfere for the good of the people they love, well things can get pretty messed up. Alexander ‘Lex’ Valentine and Kelly Blake both have enough problems to deal with, without friends on both side stepping in to play matchmaker. It doesn’t take long until things get totally out of hand.
Lex is a celebrated, sculptor, whose work is nothing less than brilliant. But while fans adore his work, they have never actually seen the reclusive sculptor. That’s because Lex is severely haphephobic, a condition from which he has suffered ever since the car crash that killed his mother and nearly took his life as a young boy. He remembers little of the accident other than the snippets from the nightmares that visit him regularly, but since the crash, he has been unable to touch another human being and unable to tolerate being touched. Both cause severe physical reactions.
Kelly is a struggling writer moonlighting as a sex tutor – a profession she fell into quite by accident, but one she’s extremely good at. Her strictly hands-off policy makes her exactly the person Lex needs. But there’s way more to Kelly’s meetings with Lex then her simply helping him cope with his lack of intimacy. When the two are together, sparks fly. The way Kelly sees it, that’s the problem. There are just too many sparks. When she terminates their sessions due to what she considers her unprofessional behavior, Lex takes a huge risk, revealing his identity to her at a gala exhibition, his first ever public appearance.
If ever there was a disaster waiting to happen, a haphephobic sculptor in a room full of rabid fans, reporters and paparazzi hot on the trail of a sensational story, this is it. Team Lex and Team Kelly don’t exactly plan to work together, but when Kelly helps Lex escape the grope of reporters and paparazzi, rumors fly that the two are engaged, rumors encouraged by Lex’s well-meaning PA and best friend, Dillon and Kelly’s secretary and neighbor, Myrna. Dillon and Myrna, along with Lex’s faithful household staff, are all ready to scheme and plan whatever it takes to get the couple together. The press feeding frenzy caused by the announcement of the oblivious couple’s impending nuptials forces Kelly into hiding at Lex’s mansion where he convinces her to be his private tutor just until the press loses interest, and she can go back home.
The problem is that when interfering friends take things into their own hands, they often fail to take into account all the variables, and in Lex and Kelly’s case, those variables take the form of secrets unlikely to stay hidden once the press starts digging. The question becomes can the couple survive the well meaning efforts of their friends long enough to truly see if that spark might actually lead to a fire?
When physical touch is impossible, intimacy may become a powerful work of art or a devastating nightmare—but, above all, it’s an act of trust.”
The Tutor Blurb:
Struggling writer, Kelly Blake has a secret life as a sex tutor. Celebrated sculptor and recluse, Alexander ‘Lex’ Valentine, can’t stand to be touched. When he seeks out Kelly’s advice incognito, the results are too hot to handle. When Kelly terminates their sessions due to what she considers her unprofessional behavior, Lex takes a huge risk, revealing his identity to her at a gala exhibition, his first ever public appearance. When Kelly helps the severely haphephobic Lex escape the grope of reporters and paparazzi, rumors fly that the two are engaged, rumors encouraged by well-meaning friends and colleagues.
The press feeding frenzy forces Kelly into hiding at Lex’s mansion where he convinces her to be his private tutor just until the press loses interest, and she can go back home. They discover quickly that touch is not essential for sizzling, pulse-pounding intimacy. But intimacy must survive the secrets uncovered as their sessions become more and more personal.
Buy links:
Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/2bV5Wak
Amazon US: http://amzn.to/2bBEwX9
Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-tutor-kd-grace/1124512836?ean=9781786510785
iBooks UK: https://itunes.apple.com/gb/book/the-tutor/id1147250136?mt=11
iBooks US: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/the-tutor/id1147250136?mt=11
Kobo: https://store.kobobooks.com/en-us/ebook/the-tutor-15
Totally Bound Publishing: https://www.totallybound.com/book/the-tutor
The Tutor Excerpt: Escape from the Press:
“Get out of my way, Ms. Spaulding,” he said between gritted teeth and stumbled again to a visible gasp of the other guests, several who, not clearly understanding the situation, were pressing forward to offer the distressed man a hand. All the while, Candice Holland kept pleading over the mic for everyone to back off and let Mr. Valentine pass. But the reporters, in particular Gail Ann Spaulding, clearly didn’t think that plea applied to them.
“He’s not going to make it. He’s doing to pass out,” Myrna gasped.
“The hell he is,” Kelly grabbed two glasses of champagne from the tray of a waiter who watched the commotion with wide eyes, then thought better of it and traded them in for two glasses of red wine, which were larger. “Help me,” she said to Myrna. The woman was nothing if not perceptive and took one of the glasses from her, then grabbed the arm of her equally perceptive ex. Following the lead of the two women, he grabbed a half empty magnum of champagne away from a server.
*****
While Lex swayed on his feet, the tenacious Gale Ann Spaulding went into rant mode about tax payers money used for unnecessary procedures, the Dictaphone now in her face, since it really was all about her and she didn’t want her adoring audience to miss a single golden word she uttered. She was just about to lay a hand on Lex’s lapel in an effort to stop his progress when it was shower time. It took Lex a moment to figure out what happened, as he felt a couple of droplets against his face like it had just started to rain in the gallery. Then the horrible woman let out a high-pitched squeal and stepped back, but not in time to prevent a serious drenching in red wine. It was surreal, really. If he’d not been afraid he’d pass out or throw up, Lex might have enjoyed it as the woman let out a barrage of expletives in a total Carrie moment – minus the pig’s blood and the bad things happening to good people and the burn the place down.
But then things turned decidedly Aliens when Kelly and her secretary pushed their way front and center, empty glasses clenched in their fists, and Lex could have sworn Kelly said something along the lines of ‘get away from him, you bitch.’ Dillon caught on to what was happening as everyone pressing in close to Alexander Valentine was showered in expensive champagne compliments of a man who seemed to be in cahoots with Kelly’s secretary. “Get him out of here.” Dillon yelled to Kelly. “There’s a limo waiting out front.”
Kelly’s secretary and the man with her elbowed and shoved. Several of the other guests had gotten the idea and showered the paparazzi in a veritable downpour of expensive alcoholic beverages with special attention paid to Gale Ann Spaulding, who was still going on about tax payers money and unnecessary procedures until her eagle eyes lit on Kelly who was motioning Lex toward the exit. Then Dillon leaped onto the stage, fairly well drenched in alcohol himself and introduced himself loudly as Lex’s PA saying he would happily answer any questions. That and the flurry of champagne gave Kelly and Lex the break they needed.
It was all like instant replay when Lex was able to actually think about what had happened in those few minutes. When it was happening, when he was in the midst of it, sure he was going to die even as he knew he wouldn’t, even as he knew it was just the phobia, all he could manage was to stay on his feet and not throw up. He kept his eyes on the woman in the hearts blood dress, focusing on her only, following her like a beacon as she cajoled and encouraged him breathlessly toward the front exit, toward the waiting limo, toward relief. All this she did without ever once touching him. Out front the driver was at the ready. He hurried them both inside, slammed the door and sped away. Only then did she start yelling at him.
*****
“Why did you do that? Why the hell did you do that? That woman’s insane, and the crowd, they don’t know. They were sympathetic, but they have no idea. You could have ended up passed out on the floor. Christ, you could have ended up in the hospital.”
“At least I waited until after the auction,” he mumbled.
“Er … Well that’s good I guess,” she said, then she added quickly, “this isn’t funny. You’re reckless.” She fumbled in the mini bar until she found a bottle of water, which she opened and handed to him. He shook his head.
“Not yet. I need to … just be still.” His complexion had gone grey with a tinge of green around the gills. She looked about desperately then grabbed the silver ice bucket and offered it to him. Just in case.
He nodded slightly, but said nothing, only laid his head back against the seat and scrunched his eyes shut tight, ice bucket balanced in a suicide grip on one knee.
If he were anyone else she would have grabbed one of the cloth napkins, wet it in the cold water and wiped his sweating forehead and, God knew, she wanted to touch him, to hold his head if he threw up, to do something, anything to ease his distress. Instead she sat silently, because that’s what she wanted when she felt nauseated – for people to shut the fuck up and leave her alone.
Apparently that wasn’t exactly the case with him. “Why did you leave without saying good-bye?” he managed, then swallowed hard a couple of times.
“What do you mean why? You know why.” She jammed her feet hard against the floorboard to keep her knees steady. Bad enough one of them shaking like a leaf, she thought. “What happened … It was –”
“Unprofessional, yes I know. Your secretary’s goddamned email said as much. But you could have least –” He was suddenly shallow breathing, lowering his head between his knees.”
“Fuck! Are you going to pass out? Please don’t pass out. How the hell will I know what to do if you pass out?”
“I’m not going to fucking … Oh God.”
“Do you need the bucket? Some water? What do you need?”
“I need my dignity back.” He said, bent double like he was talking to the floorboards. “It’s humiliating enough to be in this position, let alone to have the woman I masturbated with watch.”
“Shshs! She glanced back through the open privacy window. “Shall I roll down the windows so you can shout it to all of Portland, maybe? And anyway, goddamn it, you brought it on yourself. Clearly Dillon had everything planned out carefully for you. All you had to do was follow his instructions and then –”
“And then I saw you,” he said to the floorboard. “I wasn’t going to run the risk … fuck,” he hissed between clenched teeth and reached again for the bucket.
She couldn’t help it, her own stomach did a little pirouette. “Try to breathe deeply,” she said. “Let it roll over you.”
“Please shut up for a minute,” he half whispered.
Had he really put himself through what had to have been his worst nightmare because he wanted to see her? Idiot! Her – not him! She was an idiot for not giving him the closure he needed. Fuck! She’d worked as a tutor for almost four years now. She knew how important closure was. She knew it, and yet, in her embarrassment at her unprofessional behavior, she had denied him that essential element. She sat with her eyes down trying to give the man as much privacy as she could under the circumstances. She felt like a total asshole. She wondered what to say, wondered how the hell she could ever make up to him for what she’d put him through. When his breathing eased, she glance up. He was still pale, but at least the green and gray were fading, and his gaze was locked on her.
“What?” she asked, feeling a blush crawl up her cheeks for some reason she couldn’t name.
“Dillon was right,” he said, offering her the first relaxed smile she’d seen since they’d left the gallery.
“About what?”
“The dress. He said it was the color of hearts blood and that it suited you.” He shrugged. “I have no idea how he knows what color hearts blood is, though I’ve long suspected him of being some kind of practitioner of magic, possibly even a dabbler in the dark arts, but only for a good cause, of course.”
“Of course,” she said
“But he was right about the dress suiting you. When I looked out across the room before I gave my little speech, you were like a beacon. You were all I could see.”
She tugged at the fitted bodice and sat up a little straighter. “Myrna helped me pick it out. She said it was my color.”
He leaned back against the seat, still studying her. “It looks soft.”
“It is.” She struggled not to squirm under the intensity of his gaze. “Do you want to touch it,” she said, blushing at the look of surprise on his face. “Well you don’t have to touch me to touch the fabric, do you?” She shifted slightly to one side and tugged at the tail of the dress where the fabric was split high up her left thigh. With a bit more shifting and wriggling, all the while with him watching wide-eyed, she held the length of the dress from the split out to him. “Is that enough?”
He nodded, his breathing suddenly faster and his pulse beating hard against his throat. He was breathing faster and she was holding her breath. He reached out and took the hem of the dress into his hand, and she let go, both of them sighing in unison.
“That’s wonderful,” he said. “It must feel like you’re constantly being caressed every time you move.”
“That’s really why I chose it — the way it feels.” She ran a finger over the fabric of the bodice feeling her nipples peak beneath it. “I love soft things against my skin.”
“Me too,” he said and, holding her gaze, he lifted the fabric, brushed it over the stubble of his cheek and brought it to his lips, where he pressed a kiss, and she wasn’t sure, but she thought she might have moaned.
About K D Grace/Grace Marshall
K D’s critically acclaimed erotic romance novels include, The Initiation of Ms Holly, Fulfilling the Contract, To Rome with Lust, and The Pet Shop. Her paranormal erotic novel, Body Temperature and Rising, the first book of her Lakeland Witches trilogy, was listed as honorable mention on Violet Blue’s Top 12 Sex Books for 2011. Books two and three, Riding the Ether, and Elemental Fire, are now also available.
K D Grace also writes hot romance as Grace Marshall. An Executive Decision, Identity Crisis, The Exhibition, Interviewing Wade are all available.
Find K D Here:
Websites: http://kdgrace.co.uk/
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/KDGraceAuthor
Twitter: https://twitter.com/KD_Grace
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/kdgraceauthor/
*****
GIVEAWAY!
Make sure to follow the whole tour—the more posts you visit throughout, the more chances you’ll get to enter the giveaway. The tour dates are here: http://www.writermarketing.co.uk/prpromotion/blog-tours/currently-on-tour/k-d-grace-10/
Romancing the Past Blog 
Thanks SO much for having me on Romancing the Past to celebrate the release of The Tutor with your wonderful readers. Such a pleasure to be here!
KD xx
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It was an absolute pleasure to host you, KD xxx
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